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Post by Lacey Doby on Jul 6, 2013 0:18:31 GMT
Warning, contains spoilers for chapter 10.
The blind Shaper has the power to change people's perceptions of the past. He is the one to stir Grendel to visit the dragon; the one thing Grendel truly fears. At the Shaper's funeral, Grendel thinks to himself, "I should have captured him, teased him, made a fool of him. I should have cracked his skull midsong and sent his blood spraying out wet through the meadhall like a shocking change of key. One evil deed missed is a loss for all eternity." Grendel is tormented by this old, blind musician, yet, he doesn't even consider killing him until after he is dead. Why do you think Grendel doesn't think of destroying the Shaper until he loses that chance? Also, I wouldn't mind some good, old fashions thoughts on the role of the Shaper in general and the significance of his blindness. |
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Post by billfeng on Jul 12, 2013 22:38:12 GMT
In my opinion, Grendel is never inclined to kill the Shaper. We see from the very beginning of the novel that Grendel is cursed with eternal loneliness. This loneliness results in Grendel's lack of motivation and direction in life (shown when Grendel shouts, " Lost!" on a cliff in a flashback at the end of Chapter 3). Without a sense of direction in life, Grendel succumbs to the Shaper's invisible spell, in a similar sense to Hrothgar and his thanes. After the Shaper initiates the antagonization of Grendel in Chapter 4, men begin to chant their "valiant" deeds in the name of Hrothgar and God. At first, Grendel is particularly annoyed at how the Shaper is capable of tricking the humans with stories of false hope. By the end of the this chapter, he becomes frustrated at how he himself has fallen unwittingly for the Shaper's mythos: After Grendel accepts his fate (which is prophesised by the Dragon) as the archnemesis of mankind, Grendel begins his twelve year war with Hrothgar. It is at this first raid that Grendel portrays himself in the image that he initially loathed: To wrap things up, I believe that Grendel was entirely dependent on the Shaper for his own existence. Just like how the Shaper created a mytholigical reason for mankind to defeat evil, Grendel was also given a reason to lash out at mankind. This, I theorize, is why Grendel never thinks of killing the Shaper until after the blind man's demise. PS: Sorry Lacey Doby! I only had the time to answer one of questions! |
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Post by <3 on Jul 16, 2013 5:48:45 GMT
HI BILL
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Post by Marshall on Aug 27, 2013 19:46:22 GMT
The Shaper's blindness is probably a physical representation of his role in the book. He perverts the truth, so him having the ability to see would be unnecessary.
I think Grendel never kills him not because he is weak or respectable, but because Grendel needs him. When the Shaper shows up and mesmerizes everyone with his music, it even affects Grendel. Although he is quickly disillusioned, Grendel observes that the Shaper helps the humans. This is why he never kills the Shaper. His mission to drive the humans to greatness wouldn't be possible without the old man, because the music is inspiring regardless of verity. If the people under Hrothgar's rule had no hope or aspirations to combat the misery and death Grendel brings, they never would have progressed.
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